Police: Man admits to firing gun in central Fresno neighborhood

A drunken man was arrested in central Fresno early Saturday after admitting to firing several gunshots that were reported to police around 1 a.m.

Sgt. Brandi Phebus said Austin Flores, 22, was arrested after he showed up as officers were searching for evidence of shots fired, which were believed to have come from a home on the 1700 block of West Cortland Avenue.

Phebus said when officers first arrived in the area, a neighbor spotted Flores standing in the middle of the street at Crystal and Cortland avenues, where he fired several shots into the air as he faced patrol vehicles.

As police focused their attention on the Cortland Avenue home and spoke with a neighbor, a visibly intoxicated Flores reappeared in the middle of the street and was taken into custody.

Phebus said Flores admitted to firing the shots. Police found a loaded revolver had been thrown over a fence that led to the Cortland residence.

Flores was arrested for discharging the weapon negligently as well as being a felon in possession of a gun and ammunition. He was booked into the Fresno County Jail.

This story was originally published September 3, 2016 at 7:09 PM with the headline "Police: Man admits to firing gun in central Fresno neighborhood."